Opioids How do you deal with opioid constipation?

[DopeIsKing]

I don't prefer to discuss this topic but it must be handled. Does anyone know any home remedies for dealing with constipation do to opiates. More specifically oxycodone. How do you deal with the constipation?

Any reply helps!

-DopeIsKing

 

[KyleOpium]

If I don't go for 1-2 days, buy a bottle of milk of magnesia. First thing in the morning, have at least 8-10 tablespoons of it. Chug a cup of coffee, then a cup of water right after. Usually this makes me take a shit within about 30 minutes to an hour. You just can't dose before you go, or else it will ruin whatever you did earlier. There were times I went 5 days without going, did this little concoction, and must have lost two pounds from the shit it made me have lol.

Edit: Saw the person above me post senna. Senna has never worked for me, different strokes for different folks, but water, milk of magnesia, and coffee before your first dose will definitely make you go.

 

[DopeIsKing]

Might have to look for that senna when I'm out, but it's weird I was doing dope for a little less than a year and didn't seem to have this problem. As soon as I got back into the Oxys it really constipated me. Thanks for the reply, I'll give the milk and water thing a try also.

 

[Free]

Mirilax fixes it for me.

 

[EP158207]

Best thing to do is take an osmotic laxative such as Movicol. Usually they are shachets of white powder that you mix with a little water and drink either in the morning or at night. Its perhaps better to use such laxatives over stimulating laxatives because its creates a gentle, predictable outcome. Make sure that you drink a lot of water with osmotic laxatives, as they work by drawing water into the gut to make stoold soft and pass out easier. This will also prevent fissures and piles from straining.

 

[the_ketaman]

^^I'm on methadone & movicol just doesn't seem to work for me.. they gave it to us in detox too.

I've put up with constipation by eating lots of fibre & drinking lots of fluids. The fact that I'm now addicted to methamphetamine probably counteracts the opioid constipation. But a year or 2 ago I ended up with bad internal hemorrhoids and at one point I was bleeding so much I was becoming concerned. So I have started taking coloxyl and even though you can become dependent on it it seems to be the only thing that helps what so ever & id rathder be dependent than shitting blood every 3-5 days and sorry this might be too much but im in a male/male relationship so while i was making passionale love to my partner but i was the one in control if that can be said. Im passive too & now im healed and able to do what I want. I'm going regular because of coloxyl & diet. Methadone is so powerful in this aspect and after trying a lot of different
Things this is what works.

 

[phatass]

Eat fruit and fiber

 

[HdoubleODeezy]

^ this plus..
Take a stool softener daily like docusate sodium (sp?) brand name is Colace i believe.
Enema's and/or glycerin suppositories are good to keep around too, just in case.

 

[Libertin]

The most overlooked factor imo is exercise. Stay hydrated, eat plenty of fruit and veg, keep active. This will help more than anything else. I've tried everything, movicol, senna, lactulose. Actually lactulose will completely stimulate the shit out of your gut but it's deeply unpleasant and isn't sustainable.

 

[TheLostBoys]

Drink Mirilax the night before you go to bed. I also drink Chamomile tea daily which is good for you & keeps the stool soft.

 

[zzITCHY420zz]

my body got used to the constipating side effects..perhaps over time you can too. the trick is to wait before dosing to use the restroom (in the beginning of your day)

 

[The Doc.]

You say you take oxy well its short acting so waiting to dose an extra few hours in the morning may be all you need but if not then miralax (polyethylene glycol 3350 powder for oral solution) is your best bet i know some people have already mentioned it but its a good one it works by making your Stools wet and soft instead of stimulation of the intestinal tract like habit forming laxatives do. This can be taken daily but try taking it every other day at first to avoid any diereah or sitting on the toilet all day. You should also incorporate more exercise and eating lots of veggies and fruit with each meal avoiding fatty foods. Drink at least a gallon of water a day and stay away from fibre supplements such as metamucil as this can make opiate induced constipation much much worse due to the fact you'll have to push out a couple huge turds the size of a baby's head instead of a bunch of small turds.
Metamucil actually contributed to the one time I had a bowel impaction I was taking a bunch of metamucil hoping it would help cause I heard fibre makes you poop but I really just screwed myself over by doing that.

Keep laxatives like senna and bisacodyl on hand along with ememas for those times you've eaten too much crap and the miralax is not enough but if taking the miralax alone I really recommend still holding off a couple hours to dose your oxy each morning cause it can make a world of difference I understand wanting to get well as soon as your awake I'm the same way but now I do the same thing instead of dosing right at 6am before work I wait till 9am after I've pooped its worth the wait I tell you cause constipation sucks big time. I had a bowel impaction once and believe me it wasn't fun I never Pooped for weeks then needed surgery so don't let it come to that you can die from playing around with this it is serious business I tell you.

 

[keemo7]

I had serious trouble with this problem, and the only thing that has helped me are Senna pills. In my opinion, these are the only things that are consistently dependable.

 

[The Doc.]

Yes senna will produce an easy predictible bowel movement every time but taking these daily for extended periods (4+ months or so) can cause many problems like worsening constipation due to tolerance building up and dependence to the stimulant effect of the laxatives. Also taking these pills are hard on the stomach and can lead to conditions such as Irritable bowel syndrome which causes lots of pain and doesn't just go away. It can also lead to serious conditions such as bowel paralysis. They make you need the pills just to have a bowel movement so if you don't have any you won't have any urge to go after a while of daily use which is dangerous and you can imagine if they start causing stomach problems then you try to stop but you need them to poo you will be in a bit of trouble. They are fine for a once or twice weekly thing while taking opiates cause once you stop the opiates the bowel movements should creturn normally but if you abuse the laxatives taking larges doses daily then you will have. abit more trouble getting back to healthy consistent bowel movements without the use of laxatives.

A healthier option that's also predictable but natural are prunes they will make you go if you eat ten prunes with some hot water to down them and they are fast acting within 1-2 hours for me till they kick in the prunes have sorbitol in them which is a pretty effective laxative and prunes are good for you with good fibre in them.

 

[JackiePeyton]

Good advice trainspotter. A good fiber to use is something more soluble like Citrucel or benefiber. The total fiber intake should be a goal of 28-30 grams per day, which should be gradually achieved.
Miralax is good, but many find it to be "messy" and I actually had one doctor term the result of it "all gush and no push". I hated it.
I found that if you take fiber with it, it works better.
Also, Senna is fine and sorry to contradict you but the research has shown it not be tolerance forming,

Although long-term laxative therapy has traditionally been considered contraindicated and a risk factor for colonic denervation and reduced motility , current data suggest that the colonic dysfunction sometimes attributed to long-term laxative use (“ cathartic colon ”) may actually be the reason for long-term laxative therapy as opposed to the result.


Doughty, Dorothy B. (2012-10-12). Urinary & Fecal Incontinence: Current Management Concepts (Urinary and Fecal Incontinence) (Kindle Locations 18064-18067). Elsevier Health Sciences. Kindle Edition.

At my job, we generally recommend Senna-S for opiod related constipation. We titrate the dose upward as needed.
Another natural option is the following formulas:

Bran formula
1 cup unprocessed miller's bran
1 cup applesauce
1/4 cup prune juice


take 1 tablespoon per day initially; increase the daily dose by 1 tbsp each week until desired results are obtained


Power Pudding
1/2 cup prune juice
1/2 cup applesauce
1/2 cup wheat bran flakes
1/2 cup canned or stewed prunes


1/4 cup day initially; increase the daily dose by 1/4 cup each week until desired results are obtained.

If you find yourself in a real jam
First try a glycerin suppository, if that doesn't work, use a dulcolax
If that doesn't work Get a mineral oil enema. This stays in the colon for quite a while and softens the stool. You are supposed to follow up with a fleets enema, but often the mineral oil enema is enough.
Hopefully you will never need to go beyond this, but there have been instances where a milk and molasses enema have had to be used.

Other laxatives work well for other people but these are pretty tried and true

 

[The Doc.]

Good advice trainspotter. A good fiber to use is something more soluble like Citrucel or benefiber. The total fiber intake should be a goal of 28-30 grams per day, which should be gradually achieved.
Miralax is good, but many find it to be "messy" and I actually had one doctor term the result of it "all gush and no push". I hated it.
I found that if you take fiber with it, it works better.
Also, Senna is fine and sorry to contradict you but the research has shown it not be tolerance forming,



At my job, we generally recommend Senna-S for opiod related constipation. We titrate the dose upward as needed.
Another natural option is the following formulas:

Bran formula
1 cup unprocessed miller's bran
1 cup applesauce
1/4 cup prune juice


take 1 tablespoon per day initially; increase the daily dose by 1 tbsp each week until desired results are obtained


Power Pudding
1/2 cup prune juice
1/2 cup applesauce
1/2 cup wheat bran flakes
1/2 cup canned or stewed prunes


1/4 cup day initially; increase the daily dose by 1/4 cup each week until desired results are obtained.

If you find yourself in a real jam
First try a glycerin suppository, if that doesn't work, use a dulcolax
If that doesn't work Get a mineral oil enema. This stays in the colon for quite a while and softens the stool. You are supposed to follow up with a fleets enema, but often the mineral oil enema is enough.
Hopefully you will never need to go beyond this, but there have been instances where a milk and molasses enema have had to be used.

Other laxatives work well for other people but these are pretty tried and true

Senna isn't habit forming?? I've never heard that before I suppose everyone has their own opinions doctors and the such but mine says it is so I listen to her I also am going by experience I used to take it daily but went from needing 2-4 senokots(the natural kind) a night to ten while being in the same dose of opiates then eventually I could hardly go at all and when I would take them I got horrible stomach pains that really made my diverticulitis worse cause I'm already in pain most of the time as it is.

Since taking miralax things have been a lot better although they don't push the stools through I really don't want to take the chance of screwing up my digestive health by taking stims all the time I'm sure someone taking senna daily for a long time then decides to stop will have some issues there's no doubt about it. But then again I could just be a retard. It seems lots of things that are supposed to be bad for us are being studied then determined to actaully be in fact fine for our bodies but I don't know some of it seems like company's trying to put peoples minds at ease about using their products all I know is I don't want to end up needing those laxatives again I would rather strain a bit and push it out myself cause i have been in that situation where I need the stimulant laxatives to go and if I even take one pill away from the handful taking to try to taper down I won't have any urge to go the next morning then I need to up the dose again then a few weeks later I need another two pills each night and so forth it was amazing how fast the tolerance grew for me. I suppose it may come down to everyone is different some may be able to be unaffected by bad side effects from it but others run into problems. I do know and i hope you'll agree with me on this that if you can't go and nothing else will work then your better off biting the bullet and taking the stims to go poop versus not going at all cause the dangers associated with bowel impactions and the such are much greater than the dangers of using stimulant laxatives.

 

[The Doc.]

http://www.medical-explorer.com/drugs-s/senna_1.html

This seems to confirm what I was told by my doctor and there areany other places saying the same side effects can arise from senna abuse.
Side effects
Senna Tablets are relatively free from side effects if used occasionally and for short periods of time. Long-term use or overdosage can cause abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting, loss of weight, muscle weakness, laxative dependence, hypokalaemia, or hypocalcaemia. Senna Tablets are habit-forming and can produce laxative dependence that could lead to loss of normal bowel function and constipation after therapy is discontinued. Chronic long-term use can produce cathartic colon, which resembles ulcerative colitis and is characterised by atonic colon and dilation, especially of the right side.

Urine discoloration can occur during Senna administration, varying from red-pink in alkaline urine to yellow-brown in acidic urine.

Precautions
Senna should be given with care in patients with inflammatory bowel disease. Prolonged use should be avoided.

Breast-feeding :
Although anthraquinone derivatives may be excreted in the milk of lactating mothers, following normal dosage the concentration is usually insufficient to affect the nursing infant.

Drug Interactions :
No drug interactions with Senna are known.

Drug/Laboratory Test Interferences :
None reported.

Contra-indications
Senna should not be given to patients with intestinal obstruction or with undiagnosed abdominal symptoms.

Senna is contraindicated for long-term use; the drug produces laxative dependency and loss of normal bowel function after therapy is discontinued. In general, laxatives should not be administered chronically.


But like I said everyone has their own opinions lots of the time one doctor will have one answer for something then another will tell you different and its like who do I believe you know.

 

[Emme80]

^ I think this is a topic that is not addressed nearly enough. Sadly so, because as said before, "health starts in the Gut". It's not something people really care to discuss, but it's so dang important! After all, a as the children's book says, "Everybody Poops". If you're going to use, (even if you don't use regularly, casually, even if no drugs are involved or an existing condition compiled with opiate use- it's all certainly something to be ) you must take on & tackle the poo's! A "stuck" digestive tract can go so wrong...your crap or lack there of can cause a myriad of problems-health issues that could be a result of your Gut...your poo'z .

Fecal impaction is a mass of dry, hard stool that will not pass out of the colon or rectum.

Fecal impaction is dry stool that cannot pass out of the body. Patients with fecal impaction may not have gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms. Instead, they may have problems with circulation, the heart, or breathing. If fecal impaction is not treated, it can get worse and cause death.

A common cause of fecal impaction is using laxatives too often.

Repeated use of laxatives in higher and higher doses makes the colon less able to respond naturally to the need to have a bowel movement. This is a common reason for fecal impaction. Other causes include:

Opioid pain medicines.
Little or no activity over a long period.
Diet changes.
Constipation that is not treated. See the section above on causes of constipation.
Certain types of mental illness may lead to fecal impaction.

Symptoms of fecal impaction include being unable to have a bowel movement and pain in the abdomen or back.

The following may be symptoms of fecal impaction:

Being unable to have a bowel movement.
Having to push harder to have a bowel movement of small amounts of hard, dry stool.
Having fewer than the usual number of bowel movements.
Having pain in the back or abdomen.
Urinating more or less often than usual, or being unable to urinate.
Breathing problems, rapid heartbeat, dizziness, low blood pressure, and swollen abdomen.
Having sudden, explosive diarrhea (as stool moves around the impaction).
Leaking stool when coughing.
Nausea and vomiting.
Dehydration.
Being confused and losing a sense of time and place, with rapid heartbeat, sweating, fever, and high or low blood pressure.

I've a regimen ... particularly b /c of the opiates -but also b/ c I've been dx'd with IBD, duodenal ulcer, Sometimes will switch it up with good ol' milk if magnesia ( tho as I'm on anti-coagulants-blood thinners, I'm not supposed to take the MoM...but it used to work wonders when I could take it). My regimen is Miralax ( just as trainspotter has suggested) but I take it every other day - and about 2x's a week I also take a generic of Peri-Colace. It has 50mg. Docusate(stool softener) and 8.6mg. Sennosides( senna ). I never have the cramping that's associated with stimulants. I never have to strain nor run to the restroom. For me it's a perfect combination. I've tried mineral oil-didn't do much for me & strangely FELT like Mineral Oil...all day... Yuk. Just wasn't the one for me, I still keep it in my "backed up" arsenal. (I love an unintentional pun)
Seriously, your gut is your second brain-know it, love it, care for it - you'll be a happier person-not so weighed down. And literally- your body will thank you !

 

[mydrugbuddy]

Imo/ ime Milk of Magnesia is the most effective and comfortable remedy i have found, and i tried a fair few before getting that stuff. The relief to finally push one out was fucking enormous. Take the max dose before bed, it may take one or 2 nighlty doses to start working. Otheriwise you'd beter go get some medical help.

 

[the red shark]

Ducolax is probably the moste effective of the laxatives from the chemist